bird's-eye view

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bird's-eye view (plural bird's-eye views)

1. (idiomatic) The view from directly or high above.

   Looking down from the seventh floor balcony gave them a bird's-eye view of the street below.

   • 1960, P. G. Wodehouse, Jeeves in the Offing, chapter VIII:

     “What makes you think there is a mouse in this room?” “The evidence points that way.” [...] “And why were you standing on a chair?” “Sort of just trying to get a bird's-eye view, as it were.” “Do you often go looking for mice in other people's rooms?”

2. (by extension) A general overview or summary of a topic.

• worm's-eye view
• frog's-eye view
• top-down